Fury (A How to Train Your Dragon Fanfiction)

Chapter 6: Curious Minds

"Where to look...where to look..." I mumble to myself. I look down at Nightstar with a defeated sigh. "Think you could track him?"

She nods and changes her direction slightly. We fly for a while, the salty sea air blowing against my face and calming me down. This still feels right; flying with Nightstar, just the two of us against the world. I notice clusters of rock outcroppings rising from the sea, giving the vast ocean a different look. One of them sits on the edge of them all, overlooking rocky mountains and smoky cliffs. Toothless sits near the edge, curled up with his head resting on his paws. Hiccup is probably in front if him, out of my view.

Nightstar touches down on the spot of land and I climb off her back. Toothless perks up, getting up and bounding over to us with a goofy grin on his face. Hiccup looks over his shoulder briefly, looking rather surprised to see me.

"Hiccup," I greet.

"Hey!" he returns, sounding far more cheerful than me.

He stands up, turning to me with a smile. There's a hand drawn map at his feet, probably of Berk and the land surrounding it. I walk closer, eyes on the map.

"What're you doing?" I ask.

"Scouting. It's our hobby," he explains. "And...until now, we were also trying to find another Night Fury."

We both look back at our dragons, where Nightstar has curled up next to Toothless. I smile lightly before looking back at him.

"How big is this place?" I ask, sitting down next to the map.

"Bigger than we thought," he answers as he settles next to me. "We thought that this was all there is...but now..." He traces his finger across different sections. "Toothless and I have discovered all of this."

"That's amazing," I murmur earnestly.

I look over the piece of land in front of us. On the map, the words "Itchy Armpit" are written in what I'm assuming is Hiccup's handwriting. We remain silent for a moment or two while he refines his sketch a little.

"You missed the dragon races," I comment.

"Oh...yeah. How'd they go?" he asks, not wavering his gaze from the map.

"Well, Nightstar and I won by a hair..." I admit.

"Nice job!" He smiles, but then it disappears. "I'm sorry I missed it. I had a lot on my mind."

"Like what? Can I know?" I pause, realizing that I must be crossing some boundaries. "It's okay if you don't want to tell me. We haven't known each other for very long, after all."

"No, I'll tell you. You're trustworthy." He smiles lightly. "Oh, you're gonna love this. I wake up. The sun's shining. Terrible Terrors are singing on the rooftop. I saunter down to breakfast, thinking all is right with the world, and I get..." He gets to his feet, pausing. "Do you mind if I do a little dramatic reenactment?"

I can't help but laugh. "Sure. I must've missed it this morning."

"Because you were sleeping," he reminds me.

"Hey, I've been sleeping in the woods for years. Having a bed needed to be enjoyed!" I insist.

He laughs, the sound quite pleasant. He puffs out his chest, getting into character. When he speaks, his voice comes out deeper, like he's imitating Stoick.

"Son, we need to talk. You're the pride of Berk, son, and I couldn't be prouder..." He thumps his chest with his closed fist. I laugh, and he breaks character. "Too much?"

I clear my throat, trying and failing to stop myself from giggling. "Nope. It's good. Continue, 'Stoick'."

He smirks, shaking his head. "This is very serious. You can't laugh." I bite my lip, nodding as I hold back a smile. He resumes his reenactment. "You're all grown up, and since no chief could ask for a better successor, I've decided-"